Medical Science
Volume 24, Issue 106, November - December, 2020
Early detection of oral cancer with precancerous lesions and perception of dental professionals: A cross sectional research
Mohammed Saleh Alsharif1♦, Abdulaziz Saad Alanzan1, Fahad Abdullah Al-Gahtani1, Linah Raed Abahussain1, Rahmah Mutlaq Qbeel Aljohani2, Badr Soliman M Alhussain3
1General Dental Practitioner, Ministry of Health, Saudi Arabia
2Private practitioner, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
3Consultant, Restorative Department, Prince Sultan Military Medical City, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
♦Corresponding author
General Dental Practitioner, Ministry of Health,
Saudi Arabia;
Email: Malsharif31@gmail.com
ABSTRACT
Introduction: For the long term survival of patient timely identification and quick treatment is crucial and dentists play a vital role in
this. So the aim of the study was to assess dentists’ knowledge and practice towards the early detection of oral cancer and to
compare the levels of knowledge and practice on the basis of qualification and years of working experience. Methods: This cross
sectional study was conducted among the dental professionals in Riyadh using an online survey. Online questionnaire consisted of
questions related to professional and demographic data followed by questions concerning oral cancer detection methods, practice
and experience. Results: A total of 336 dental professionals responded to the survey sent online (63% females and 37% males). Out
of these, 41.7% of the participants reported that they had encountered pre-malignant lesions in their clinical practice, 79.2% felt the
need of additional training on how to perform exfoliative cytology and 22.9% of the dentists were aware of recent advances for early
detection for oral cancer. Conclusion: There is a need of injecting fresh knowledge and insight about the recently used diagnostic
techniques among dental professionals of Riyadh in order to improve the prognosis and chances of detection and treatment of
suspected patients.
Keywords: cross sectional survey, oral cancer, precancerous lesions, dental professionals
Medical Science, 2020, 24(106), 4438-4444
